After
Cheerleader Camp I decided to go back to a slasher that I remember liking quite
a bit. Though like Cheerleader Camp I haven’t watched it in years, or at least
I don’t remember doing so. The copy that I watched was the old bare bones DVD
that I picked up years ago. Not sure if the movie has a better release or not.
Regardless let us dive into April Fool’s Day.
Muffy,
portrayed by the lovely and prolific ‘80s actress Deborah Foreman, has invited
her friends to spend the weekend in an isolated house that she is about to
inherit. We meet the guests as they are hopping the ferry to the island. Of
course, there is some horsing around and an April Fool’s Day prank. Being a
slasher movie this leads to a terrible accident with a member of the crew being
hurt. That leads to the only boat on the island being used to rush him to the
hospital stranding the guests on the island for the weekend. Soon after
arriving Muffy’s behavior becomes increasingly erratic and the guests start
disappearing. When their bodies are found in the well it is clear someone on
the island is a killer! Is it Muffy or does it have to do with the accident?
Possible neither!
 |
| It's all fun and games until someone puts an eye out! |
In my
review for Cheerleader Camp I mentioned how mainstream audiences dismiss Slasher
movies as being dumb and just an excuse for gore and nudity. April Fool’s Day
tosses that assertion in the trash bin where it belongs. Here you have an
intelligently written movie that respects the genre and the audience. The
opening scene on the ferry goes a long way towards establishing the characters
and the roles they will play as the plot progresses. The characters that
normally would be the comic relief get very serious after the accident on the
ferry. You see the friends trying to have some fun afterwards at the house, but
it is subdued. Then the pranks and other bad things start happening. Their
first reaction is to call the police! Okay here we have a slasher movie filled
with characters that act like real people in a screwy situation.
The cast
is solid with the previously mentioned Deborah Foreman as well as Amy Steel as
our two female leads. Amy Steel is every bit as good here as she was in Friday
the 13th part II, starring again as the “final girl”. The gore is
subdued as all the kills are off screen with us only seeing the bodies after
the fact. Like most good slasher movies not in a franchise the identity of the
killer is kept in doubt until the very end. When it is revealed it is a huge
surprise. Can’t say much more without spoiling things.
I know
that a lot of fans don’t like April Fool’s Day. Mostly it is because of the big
reveal at the end. This movie came out in 1986 long after the formula was
established. Instead of just cranking out another in the line of same stories
they did something unique and fun. I think it works really well and recommend
everyone give April Fool’s Day a chance.
Next up in my Slasher
marathon Girls Nite Out
© Copyright 2017 John Shatzer
No comments:
Post a Comment